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One of the 8 Consumer Rights as recognized by the United Nations is “The Right to Redress” – a consumer’s right to a remedy if a company/service provider does not engage fairly and appropriately in the market place. Today there are many organisations in South Africa that exist to ensure that a consumer’s Right to Redress is promoted and protected. Some exist by statute, others are voluntary Ombuds schemes, and others are industry associations. All provide a free service to consumers who cannot get a satisfactory remedy from the company/provider concerned. They look at both sides of the story and obtain redress for a consumer where they are of the view that the company/provider has not acted correctly.

This website provides you with a list of Organisations that you may want to contact.

Remember that you first need to try to sort out your issues with the company concerned.

An Ombudsman (conventional English plural: ombudsmen) is a person who acts as a trusted intermediary between an organization and some internal or external constituency while representing the broad scope of constituent interests. An indigenous Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish term, Ombudsman is etymologically rooted in the Old Norse word umbuðsmann, essentially meaning "representative". An ombudsman is an official, usually appointed by the government or by parliament, who is charged with representing the interests of the public by investigating and addressing complaints reported by individual citizens.

Usually appointed by the organization, but sometimes elected by the constituency, the ombudsman may, for example, investigate constituent complaints relating to the organization and attempt to resolve them, usually through recommendations (binding or not) or mediation. Ombudsmen sometimes identify organizational roadblocks running counter to constituent interests.

In some jurisdictions an ombudsman charged with the handling of concerns about national government is more formally referred to as the "Parliamentary Commissioner" (e.g., the United Kingdom Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration, and the Western Australian state Ombudsman). In many countries where the ombudsman's remit extends beyond dealing with alleged maladministration to promoting and protecting human rights, the ombudsman is recognized as the national human rights institution. The word ombudsman and its specific meaning have been adopted in various languages, including Spanish, Dutch and Czech. The post of ombudsman has been instituted by other governments and organizations such as the European Union.

An ombudsman may not be appointed by a legislature, but may instead be appointed by, or even work for, a corporation such as a utility supplier or a newspaper, for an NGO, for a professional regulatory body, or for local or municipal government.

In some countries an Inspector General may have duties similar to or overlapping with an ombudsman appointed by the legislature.